My dear Bob: Yes it sucks to get old, but please know that I'm saying prayers really hard for you sweetie. Hang in there please. I might be visiting the UK in 2012 and I really want to see you.

{{hugs}} Chris

Life should NOT be a journey to the grave with the intention of arriving safely in an attractive and well preserved body, but rather to skid in sideways, champagne in one hand and strawberries in the other, body thoroughly used up, totally worn out, and screaming WOO HOO - What a Ride!--unknown

Sometimes the most real things in the world are the things we can't see--Polar Express
Until one has loved an animal, part of their soul remains unawakened.

Hi Chris,
My dog, Jasper, has what must be considered the most sensitive tummy in the world. He gets into something before I can get to him, and we will go throw a solid week of intense diahhrea, sometimes vomiting, but otherwise normal behaviour. I have taken him to the vet many times. While the anti-diarhal helps a lot..flagyl (metronidizole), I have to do this:

No food whatsoever for a full 24 hours. None. Then, we go on a plain boiled rice and greenbeans for 3 days, and this is small amounts. Jasper normally eats one cup twice a day. When he is on the green bean/rice diet, it is a half cup mixture, twice a day. When the 5th day comes around, I offer him 3-4 small meals, maybe 1/4 cup (so one fourth of his normal meal) 3 or four times a day. He also eats a special, limited ingredient diet, sweet potato and fish, as those are seemingly less allergy'ish than others.

Every day for dinner, he gets one omega 3 pill, and a allergy pill. If I keep him away from everything else, he is ok, but if he eats something outside- it is devastating to him. This summer, he literally broke out of the house, through a window screen, to get outside to do his business during the day. In the process, he took out most of the other screens, too. It seems to stress him out, which only contributes to the problem.

The no food for 24 hours cannot be encouraged enough. It gives the gut time to calm down.

The no food for 24 hours cannot be encouraged enough. It gives the gut time to calm down.

It's funny, as a human with food allergies, after I have had a new reaction to something, I have no desire to eat the next day, and only approach food cautiously for a couple days after that. And I'm not at all hungry usually for several days, it's like my body is telling my brain - "Nope, food is bad! Never mind that stuff!"

Hi Chris,
My dog, Jasper, has what must be considered the most sensitive tummy in the world. He gets into something before I can get to him, and we will go throw a solid week of intense diahhrea, sometimes vomiting, but otherwise normal behaviour. I have taken him to the vet many times. While the anti-diarhal helps a lot..flagyl (metronidizole), I have to do this:

No food whatsoever for a full 24 hours. None. Then, we go on a plain boiled rice and greenbeans for 3 days, and this is small amounts. Jasper normally eats one cup twice a day. When he is on the green bean/rice diet, it is a half cup mixture, twice a day. When the 5th day comes around, I offer him 3-4 small meals, maybe 1/4 cup (so one fourth of his normal meal) 3 or four times a day. He also eats a special, limited ingredient diet, sweet potato and fish, as those are seemingly less allergy'ish than others.

Every day for dinner, he gets one omega 3 pill, and a allergy pill. If I keep him away from everything else, he is ok, but if he eats something outside- it is devastating to him. This summer, he literally broke out of the house, through a window screen, to get outside to do his business during the day. In the process, he took out most of the other screens, too. It seems to stress him out, which only contributes to the problem.

The no food for 24 hours cannot be encouraged enough. It gives the gut time to calm down.

Good luck!!

Johanna

Poor Jasper and poor you. {{hugs}}

Similar to Jasper, over the years Bob has eaten all sorts of things, inorganic and inedible, many is the time I have had to withhold food for twenty four hours and then feed him something easy on the tummy for a few days, usually fresh chicken, or fish, and rice. However this 'whatever it is' now is kind of different.

In the spring of 2010 he was checked out for weight loss but we managed to get it stable again by feeding him up but this latest weight loss seems to be somehow tied to allergies. Any kind of gluten and/or grain seems to set him off. I have fed him a whole bunch of different foods, both dry and canned, and the one he is on now, canned, seems to suit him, so far anyway.

I feed it shared out into three or four meals spread throughout the day in order not to overload his stomach in one go. As to his picking up and eating things I use a muzzle for walks and watch him as much as I can when he goes out in the garden.

He was on steroids for a week or so but besides the fact they didn't seem to be helping much they made him uber hungry to the point he was snaffling food any which way he could and was nasty with it, so I weaned him off them.

Got an vet appointment on Monday morning, (God willing we can get there). I'm almost certain Bob has not gained any weight, in fact could even have lost some more after last weekend. But fingers crossed eh?

"I always felt that when someone introduces you to the outdoors, you come to feel like you owe them something. ‘Cause what they really gave you is a lifetime of memories, and a lifestyle you’ll always love. Of course I suppose the best way to pay them back is to be that person for someone else. "